The Delhi High Court, in a judgment passed on August 23, has ordered the Ministry of Communitions to remove 38 websites impersonating an Indian crypto investment firm within a week's time. Last week, Mudrex filed a petition with the Delhi High Court seeking action against fraudulent websites after its users reported falling victim to scams. The development comes against the backdrop of a rapid escalation in scams and hacks targeting the crypto community around the world.
The official page of the Delhi High Court order portal published the directive on August 23. Justice Mini Pushkarna issued the order to the Ministry of Communications, directing it to remove the questionable websites by August 30.
Gadgets360 is awaiting a response from the ministry on whether it plans on addressing the spread of fraudulent websites on popular search engines from Google and Microsoft.
Mudrex had submitted evidence of its names and other marks being used extensively by fake websites to interact with users across the country. The impersonators are also running their own businesses under the pretense of Mudrex's identity.
The petition document shows that Mudrex received multiple complaints from distressed people, who mistook the scam websites for the legitimate official business site of the crypto platform.
The complaints revealed that some impersonating websites were promising work opportunities. The document further noted that these infringing, fraudulent websites had duped innocent customers into investing lakhs of rupees. The handlers of the scam sites had also collected sensitive data from unsuspecting users, including details of Aadhar Card, Pan Card, bank statements, and property papers, while leading them to wrongful loss, tarnishing Mudrex's market reputation.
The document listed the 38 impersonating websites that were using Mudrex's trademark. After becoming aware of the fraudulent websites, Mudrex, also issued advisories on its official handles on X, LinkedIn, Instagram, and in emails to its users, asking them to pay caution before engaging with websites carrying its name, label, or other identification marks.
“We are committed to protecting our users and upholding the integrity of our brand. Most platforms in India face this issue, but we wanted to make sure it is addressed and solved for our users. Our focus remains on maintaining the trust of our users and reinforcing our commitment to a safe and reliable platform,” Mudrex CEO Edul Patel said, commenting on the development.
There has been an increase in crypto related scams around the world. A recent report by Binance claimed that the exchange had managed to prevent losses of around $2.4 billion (roughly Rs. 20,130 crore) between January and July this year.
